Fox: Episode I + II Review
SPOILERS AHEAD!!!! Recap: In the Pilot, a beautiful, mysterious woman (Monroe Hayden) wakes up in a forest. She doesn’t seem to be lost or confused but more like, she’s been here before. As she ventures further into the forest she finds herself standing in front of a gigantic lake. The world is saturated with colors. It really is beautiful and not CG! However things start to change. The woman senses something is behind her and turns to see what it is. A box mysteriously waits for her. Notice she walks away from the lake where it’s beautiful and deeper into the forest of trees where the colors become less and less saturated. The box seems to beckon her. She reaches it and begins to open it all the while whispers and demonic shrieks are heard as the lid opens higher and higher and then… the episode ends! But don’t worry because a second episode was released too. The second episode begins just as mysteriously as the first. Blinking in and out of blackness from blurry images of a woman and a forest, a woman’s voice is heard calling out to someone named , “Mina.” The same voice says different things throughout this intro but in different ways, some caringly and others more seductive. Her voice overlaps the sound of an ambulance and a heart monitor. The voice says, “Don’t you close your eyes!” as other whispers are heard then the voice says softly, “Dream of me and live forever,” then the monitor flat lines and then blackeness. Suddenly the Fox logo appears and shortly after, we begin where left off. Fox is about to open the box. It’s much more quiet this time around as we see it from another point of view. She opens it and a melody begins to play clarifying that it is in fact a music box. The melody plays, “Come Little Children” by James Horner. While this plays whispers are heard along with the sounds of children giggling. The woman is not surprised by any of this, so it seems. The sounds get louder and she slams it shut. Although she seemed to have known it would happen, she still wasn’t prepared for it as she takes a moment to catch her breath. Then she senses something behind her again. It’s another woman whom she recognizes and releases a smile. They approach each other and begin a conversation. The other woman is discovered to be Mina (Allyson Moyer). And the mysterious woman with the great hair and green eyes is Fox. Their conversation is also mysterious as Mina doesn’t seem to know where she is or how she got there while Fox tries to apologize for something. Mina then notices the box and starts to question Fox. We then cut to a face on to camera shot of Fox saying, “Mina, we need to talk.” End episode. Review: Beginning in Episode 1, the idea that Fox has been here before is intriguing to me because if this is true then it suggests a history has happened in this place to this character which adds depth to the story and makes her more believable as a person because she now has a past we know nothing of. When she turns away from the beauty of the lake, she walks further into the forest which is pretty close to bare. Hardly any green. I love this because it sets the dark tone of the show yet also represents good and evil, perhaps? Life where there is light (The Lake) and death where there is darkness (The Forest). When we see Fox she is against a bare forest background. When we see Mina, she is set against a green background. Good and evil playing their roles (possibly) cinematically. We also discovered that there is in fact nothing in the box which was kind of a bum. A lightsaber would have been cool but that doesn’t mean the box is worthless as some sort of dark magic seems to surround it. They’re making Fox look a bit evil in my opinion but I like that because in the books, Fox tells Daisy that not everything is what it seems and in the trailer, she says to Mina, “You need to be careful though, this place… it’ll play tricks on you.” Whether she is evil or not, mystery surrounds this woman and I love that because I want to know who she is and what she wants. I get Mina. I understood her from the moment she appeared. She likes Fox. Simple. You see it in her face. It’s Fox I don’t get and want to know. Allyson Moyer, so far, plays Mina exact. We know who she is and what she wants; she’s a girl who has a big crush on the gorgeous specimen that is Fox most likely due to the reason we’re drawn to her- she’s mysterious and hardly says anything. In the first episode she didn’t speak a word yet we bought what she was selling. Monroe Hayden is the one who had the challenge of hardly saying anything and expressing more through her face while still being likable. Challenge completed, so far. I like Fox. I may even have a crush on her. My only fear is that she won’t show any emotion and just be as cardboard as Hayden Christensen was as Anakin Skywalker. We’ll have to see. The shots are gorgeous! This was shot by someone who went to school and learned! This isn’t shot by someone who bought a good camera and just said, “Let’s make a show!” And it definitely wasn’t shot by a spoiled brat who used mommy and daddy’s money to make a show with no experience in visual storytelling. That leads me to the next thumbs up, visually not only is it beautiful to see but the story flows through each cut. One shot leads to another which leads to another and expresses the story. It’s almost like the narrator. Thought was put into this show which suggests the creators either made storyboards or just had it in their DNA to tell good stories because damn am I hooked. That leads me to another thumbs up, the show answers questions that ultimately make you ask more so obviously the makers know how to tell a good story. They aren’t showing all their cards and we have no idea where they are going with it. That could be bad. What if they have no direction? What if this is it. It’s like Lost. Just keeps you asking? So although, for now, it’s a thumbs up for the mystery, it could be what ultimately sinks them but we’ll have to see in further episodes. Another note, the sound effects were awesome. Obviously ADR was done which would mean that the original track was on mute and they had to recreate those sounds you hear. In case you don’t get it, that means someone had to record the sounds of birds and trees and wind for the background. That also means someone had to record footsteps in a leafy environment. Someone had to record Monroe Hayden breathing. Someone had to record the sound of her jacket. This is not a typical student made film. This is serious matters. The makers knew what had to be done and did it. Listen to it with headphones when Fox opens the box. Creepy! The music was also very well done and worked magnificently! The music was composed for the show and set the mood. It was the perfect undertone. Mina has her own theme. When she appeared, her theme came on. Wow! The compositions maybe short but so it the episode so it’s understandable and the music also builds up the moment when Fox is simply walking to the box. Epic. Simply epic and talented are these makers. Is there anything bad? The ADR track of the vocals sounds like it was recorded in a room but that doesn’t really bother me. Some shots aren’t as clear as I would like but that could have been on purpose. So… no. Nothing bad but those things I mentioned could have been better but not bad. Should you give Fox a try? Uh, yes! Absolutely! Score: Episode 1 > 5/5 Episode 2 > 4.5/5